Senators praise Genachowski, growl at FCC

The White House's nominee for chair of the Federal Communications Commission got a movie-star reception from the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation on Tuesday. Julius Genachowski was praised and courted by senators on both sides of the aisle throughout his confirmation testimony. And Republican Commissioner Robert M. McDowell, nominated for a new term, also received a warm welcome.

But the FCC itself didn't come in for many compliments, especially from committee Chair Jay Rockefeller (D-WV). "Fix this agency," he told Genachowski. "Or we will fix it for you."

Over the last decade, the FCC's performance has been "disappointing," Rockefeller continued. "Too often FCC Commissioners have focused on making sure that they advocate the ideas and needs of the companies that they regulate and their bottom lines," he added. The Commission has "shortchanged consumers and the public interest." Their influence is "especially troubling, even noteworthy in the way that they clamor for their preferred candidates for FCC office."

And that, Rockefeller darkly warned, "is why I am deeply interested in FCC reform, and continue to weigh the merits of FCC reauthorization." To make clear how seriously he saw the issue, Rockefeller interrupted the proceeding in the middle of Genachowski's testimony to berate colleagues who made statements on the nominees' behalf, then left the hearing.

"Prove to us," Rockefeller told the star witness, "that the agency is not battered beyond repair."

Genachowski breezed past these warnings with eloquence, charm, and generic statements regarding the key issues. He made as many references to his career as a law clerk, FCC advisor, and media executive as he did to questions of policy. The nominee did, however, broadly hint at his perspective in one passage from his opening statement.

"The need has never been greater for an FCC that sees the world from the perspective of consumers and families," he told the hearing.

We're here to enforce the law

With that came senatorial concerns, to which Genachowski offered obvious answers. Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-TX) quickly asked the candidate for his perspective on the agency's indecency rules. Genachowski noted that, as a parent, he shared concerns about television content, and as a broadcast executive had worked with Common Sense Media, a educational non-profit, whose list of beliefs calls for "media sanity, not censorship."

But to Caesar he gave Caesar's due. "The FCC's job in this area is to enforce the law," he told Hutchison. "And Congress has been clear on the indecency law. The Supreme Court recently rejected a challenge to the indecency law. The FCC's job is to enforce the law and it will enforce the law around indecency."

Hutchison also probed the nominee about another hot button issue around the capitol. "We talked in my office about the so-called 'Fairness Doctrine,'" she mentioned. "And as I understood you said that you do not support reviving it, or policies like it, directly or indirectly, through localism and that sort of thing."

"I don't support reinstatement of the Fairness Doctrine," he replied. "I believe strongly in the First Amendment. I don't think the FCC should be involved in censorship of content based on political speech or opinion."

Genachowski offered less agreement regarding what seemed to be the senator's support of the elimination of the agency's newspaper/TV cross ownership rules. The FCC modified those restrictions in November of 2007, but reform groups have taken the matter to Federal court. Hutchison said she supported those restraints in the past, but no longer does. What did the nominee think about the question given the crisis that newspapers find themselves in today?

After some reminiscing about his college newspaper career, Genachowski called the newspaper industry a "hard business, especially in these times." But "excessive consolidation is still something that I think needs to be paid attention to," he added.

Maria Cantell (D-WA) wanted a progress report about the FCC's decision to authorize the use of unlicensed "white space" devices. She called the authorization a "conservative start, but it was a start." Will Genachowski prioritize testing to make sure the technology can roll out relatively soon?

"Senator, the answer is yes," Genachowski replied. "I'm glad that you are mentioning another example of creative use of spectrum to advance the overall goals of the Communications Act."

Thus it went, more or less, regarding a wide variety of issues: wireless competition, the Universal Service Fund, and broadband deployment prominent among them. But although the senatorial questions were polite and the discussions unargumentative, it's clear that this Congress expects a lot of change at the FCC, and it expects its new chairman to deliver.

"I'm awed by your willingness to serve," Rockefeller told Genachowski at the end of his opening statement, "because you are going to be a lot older when you are finished."

When he and the other nominees get to begin is another question. Rockefeller promised a "swift confirmation," for Genachowski, but another senator told McDowell that "between the two leaders on the senate floor," agreement had not been reached on "your nomination and another FCC nomination," which may be a reference to Democratic nominee Mignon Clyburn or a proposed second Republican nominee.

Matthew Lasar / Matt writes for Ars Technica about media/technology history, intellectual property, the FCC, or the Internet in general. He teaches United States history and politics at the University of California at Santa Cruz.